At St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, we are within walking distance of countless cultural, natural, historical, and educational resources within Harrisburg, PA. Our students routinely walk to theaters, museums, libraries, and state government buildings to participate in the real life of our city and region. Every day we live our tag line “The City is Our School!” However, we realize the importance of expanding our students’ experiences through field trips. Through our EUSA grant, we were able to provide such experiences to our students by visiting a farm as well as traveling approximately 100 miles east to Philadelphia.
The fourth graders of St. Stephen’s Episcopal School were fortunate enough to take a trip to Mrs. and Mr. Bower’s house. Mrs. Bower is an affiliate of the group of volunteers who came to SSES to help teach the students how to knit. The purpose of the trip was to show the fourth graders the many wonderful items that can be created with yarn, as well as give them an idea of what can be grown and created in their homes! Mrs. Bower showed the fourth graders how she created her own yarn using spindles and alpaca wool from the animals the students even saw on her property. She also showed them her weaving machine and taught them how to operate it. This allowed students to add on to her current piece, a colorful scarf. Mrs. and Mr. Bower also showed the students the many things that can be done at home, such as growing your own food like fruits, vegetables, eggs, and trying out new foods like asparagus and rhubarb. They also showed us how to harvest their growing foods and shows us their compost, which the students helped fill, animal shed, chicken coop, and how they dry dead animals. Overall, it was a wonderful experience from a member of the community.
For our trip to Philadelphia, the 6th, 7th and 8th graders and chaperones walked downtown from the train station to reach Love Park, our first stop on the Philly bus tour. Once we were on the bus, we saw historical sites like Ben Franklin’s home, his fire brigade, the very first post office in the entire United States, and the printing press where he published Poor Richard’s Almanac. We also saw the official resting place of the soldiers that fought in the Revolutionary War and visited the Liberty Bell Center to learn about its origins, including how its crack happened, and its symbolism. Our day ended with a walk through Chinatown to see the Friendship Gate and a few of the murals in the neighborhood. It was a great day to explore and learn in Philadelphia.
Thank you EUSA for providing these student experiences through the grant funds.